A32-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, November 30, 2002
Pennsylvania Cattleman’s College Is December 14
STATE COLLEGE (Centre
Co.) The Pennsylvania Cattle
man’s College will be conducted
at Toftrees Resort in State Col
lege on December 14 starting at 9
am. The fee is $2O.
“The purpose of the College is
to provide timely information
that will be useful to Pennsylva
nia beef producers,” said event
coordinator Dr. John Comerford,
Associate Professor of Dairy and
Animal Science at Penn State.
The event was planned by
‘Tilling The Soil Of Opportunity’ Set
LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.)
- “Tilling the Soil of Opportuni
ty” is a business planning class
for farmers who want to explore
different production options on
their farm.
The series of meetings is aimed
at teaching small to mid-scale
farmers and agricultural profes
sionals the necessary business
skills to make decisions that af-
fect their current businesses, or to
start a new enterprise.
The course is taught in 12,
three-hour sessions, during which
farmers develop mission and
goals, marketing strat
egies, financial
statements, and other
critical components of
a comprehensive busi
ness plan. Each class
session combines lec
ture, guest speakers,
and worksheets to pro
vide the information
necessary to complete
a chapter of the farm
business plan.
“We recognize the
great need to make
this kind of business
training available to
the future stakehold
ers of Pennsylvania
agriculture,” said Rus
sell Redding, deputy
secretary, Pennsylva
nia Department of
Ag r i
culture,
This business plan
ning class is being of
fered by Penn State
Cooperative Exten
sion, using a NxLe
veL'“ program devel
oped by the University
of Colorado at Denver
and the University of
Nebraska. Courses are
adapted site-to-site
based on products and
services represented
and marketing poten
tial. Classes were held
for the first time in
Pennsylvania, last
winter in the Hershey
and Gettysburg areas.
These pilot classes
were composed of a
wide variety of agri
cultural business
people, includ
ing landscapers,
Christmas tree grow
ers, organic vegetable
producers and dairy
farm
ers.
“We think the pro
gram is of value, espe
cially with the trying
times farmers are hav
ing now and the in
creasing number of
new farmers,” said
Dave Smith, Mid A
tlantic Farm Credit.
“Opportunity
abounds. Many pro
ducers are learning to
succeed by taking con
trol of their own mar
keting efforts, and ef
fectively using their
resources in meeting
the demands of con-
Penn State personnel, county ex
tension agents and members of
the Pennsylvania Cattleman’s
Association.
Some of the topics to be pres
ented include:
• The New Livestock Evalua
tion Center (LEC)
“Construction of the multimil
lion dollar Pennsylvania Depart
ment of Agriculture facility near
State College is nearly complete,
so it is time to open the discus
sion about how the beef industry
sumers.”
The new training program was
developed with the support of the
USDA Sustainable Agricultural
Research and Education pro
gram. It is available to all farm
ers and agricultural profession
als.
People currently involved in
farming and related businesses
looking to “fine-tune” their cur
rent enterprises, as well as begin
ning farmers considering the
business possibilities, are eligible
to sign up for the classes that will
begin soon in Lancaster and Get
j the° U system! - A Proven Success j
L Our Dry-Trak m surface provides your livestock with optimum L
J traction and movement,achieved through the proper balance of J
L mat thickness and durometer (indentation or imprinting) as well L
J as -high grade input materials. J
U -exclusive interlock design. U
r -specialized Pro-Slider™cleaning equipment. * p*
n -Slat-Lok™ non invasive anchors for slatted flioors. U
L COMPONENTS OF A PROVEN SYSTEM f
I Gary Johnson total J
| Box 154 Church St IIAIJkA.'iI.IJLMI IS- interlocked f*
S Sprmgville Pa www.animatonlme.com JnHBF H
J (570)965-2613 folkema@sympatico.ca J
should use this facility to im
prove beef production in Pennsyl
vania,” said Glenn Eberly, super
visor of the LEC.
• Cooperative Marketing of
Purebred Beef Bulls. Chester
County extension agent Cheryl
Fairbairn has been marketing
purebred bulls in the Midwestern
US from her family beef herd for
a number of years with several
other breeders. She will discuss
how they have made the process
successful.
tysburg. The Lancaster class will
meet on Monday evenings, Dec.
2-March 17 at the Lancaster
Farm and Home Center. The
Gettysburg class will meet
Wednesday mornings, Jan.
8-April 9 at the Adams County
Agricultural Center.
Contact Winifred McGee,
(717) 270-4391, or Lynn
Kime, (717) 334-6271, for V“
additional information or
to receive a copy of the
class registration form.
+p An Update on New Estrus
Synchronization Products. Guest
Brian House from Select Sires in
Plain City, Ohio will discuss the
use of several new tools for estrus
synchronization now available
for beef producers.
• Keeping the Family on the
Family Farm. Beef producers
who desire to see their farm re
main in the family for use by the
next generation will need the in
formation from Susan Blank, a
beef producer and attorney from
Eighty-Four, PA. Susan will pro
vide some useful tips for plan
ning your estate and will answer
your questions.
• The Pennsylvania Beef
Council will provide information
about the use of checkoff funds in
Pennsylvania. Beef producers
pay a $1 checkoff for the sale of
any animal, and Paul Slayton,
executive director of the Council,
will explain what happened to
the dollars in Pennsylvania. The
Council will conduct its annual
Randall G. Renninger
Certified Public Accountant
Specializing in agriculture and construction industries
“We help business people discover ways to cut costs,
save taxes, and be more profitable”
Call about our FREE seminars
535 W. Orange Street, Lancaster, PA 17603
(717) 299-6480 ♦ Fax (717) 299-6390
YOUR FULL LINE KUBOTA PRODUCT HEADQUARTERS
• INVENTORY • PRICE • KNOWLEDGEABLE SALES STAFF
♦ SERVICE EXPERIENCE
> fgjl If |T p i| ¥ S* 2 Diwonnt* <
V IKUB B T H ' < 7AwdlaMe.r‘
We Ship Parts
UPS
Rt #7, BOX 406,
Lebanon, FM 17042
Rt. 419 1 Mite West
Of Schaefterstown
717-949-2000
or Toll Free
877-4Kubota
<4sB-26821
f Visit our web site at www.kubotaparts.com • E-mail us at kubota@nbn.net
meeting immediately following
the program, and all the attend
ees are invited to attend.
• Grazing systems for Pennsyl
vania beef farmers, the advan
tages and disadvantages of re
tained ownership of feeder cattle,
nutrient management laws for
beef producers, and freezer beef
marketing liability and regula
tions will round out a full day of
instruction and information.
The Cattleman’s College is
sponsored by Penn State Exten
sion, the Pennsylvania Cattle
man’s Association, the Pennsyl
vania Angus Association, the
Pennsylvania Simmental Associ
ation, the Pennsylvania Beef
Council, Intervet, Inc., and Max-
Flex Fence Systems. The fee for
the program, including a buffet
lunch, is $2O per person, and reg
istration has been extended to
December 10. Call Dr. John
Comerford at 8143-863-3661 for
more information.
\ TRACTORS & EQUIPMENT"!
MONDAY - FRIDAY 8:00 - 5:00
SATURDAY 8:00 -12:00
Serving Central PA Since 1921
•ILOTS! KELLER BROS.
AIRPORT
2550' RUNWAY 600' From Dealershu
Call For Details
On Leasing
LANCASTER
1950 PMMfle Pike,
Lancaster RA 17601
At Route 30 &
Fruitville Pike
717-569-2500
or Toll Free
877-3KUBOTA
<3sB-2662)